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1
Place the pork trotters and neck bones in a large pot. Cover with cold water, bring to a full boil, and boil hard for 10 minutes. Drain, discard the water, and rinse each bone under cold running water, removing all grey residue and blood. The bones are ready when the water runs clear and no dark matter remains.
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2
Return the cleaned bones to the pot with the chicken backs. Add 3 litres of cold water. Bring to a rolling boil over high heat, then maintain that vigorous, sustained rolling boil — not a simmer — for a minimum of 12 hours, adding water as needed to keep the bones submerged. This is where the dish lives or dies: it is the sustained rolling boil, and nothing less, that drives collagen into the liquid and breaks fat into an emulsion, converting a clear stock into a creamy, opaque, milky-white broth. A low heat produces clear stock; it does not produce tonkotsu.
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3
While the broth boils, prepare the kuro-ninniku. Char the unpeeled garlic cloves directly over a gas flame or in a dry heavy pan until deeply blackened on all sides. Peel, then pound or process the charred cloves to a rough paste. Melt the lard in a small pan over low heat, add the garlic paste, and cook gently until the oil is deeply dark and fragrant with a roasted, smoky pungency. Reserve. The oil is ready when its aroma shifts from raw garlic to a dark, smoke-forward depth.
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4
For the chashu, roll the pork belly tightly, tie at intervals, and place in a snug pan with the soy sauce and mirin. Add water to just cover. Simmer gently, turning occasionally, until the roll is tender throughout and the braising liquid has reduced to a lacquered glaze — approximately 90 minutes. Cool in the liquid, then slice to 5 mm rounds. The surface should be glossy and the flesh yield to light pressure.
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5
Combine the salt and light soy sauce to form the shio-tare. Stir until the salt is fully dissolved. The tare should taste intensely saline and clean, with no graininess on the tongue.
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6
When the broth has reached full opacity and coats a ladle in a creamy white layer, strain it through a medium sieve, discarding the solids. Season by adding shio-tare to each bowl individually — not to the broth pot — starting with approximately 15 ml per portion, adjusting to taste. The broth should be rich and intensely porky, with a saline backbone that supports without dominating the emulsion.
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7
Bring a large pot of unsalted water to a vigorous boil. Cook the thin straight noodles for 30–60 seconds only, according to the desired firmness: kata (firm) at 30 seconds, futsu (standard) toward 45–50 seconds, yawa (soft) at 60 seconds. Drain immediately and shake off excess water. The noodles are done when just tender but still carrying distinct resistance at the core.
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8
Place the noodles in a warmed bowl. Ladle the seasoned broth over. Arrange two to three slices of chashu, a portion of negi, a mound of beni shoga, a pinch of sesame, and a few drops of kuro-ninniku oil at the surface. Serve immediately. The beni shoga must be present — its acidity and sharpness are the structural counterpoint to the fat-emulsion broth.